An Unexpected Occurance
by RestfulInsomniac
Summary: When Peter calls Neal in at 4 in the morning, it can't be anything other than a case. It just so happens that the piece stolen is a sculpture by Sally Jackson, and Neal, or whatever his name is, will need a lot of help to get the sculpture and Sally back.
1. The Poker Player

_Lightning flashed across the sky, briefly lighting up the huge skyscrapers that rose to the left and right of him, but none reached his level. He laughed, exhilarated from the raw power in the air as the rain poured down around him. The water crashed all around him, flooding the streets and soaking anyone who dared to venture out during the rainy night. He felt powerful, incredible and awe-inspiring, standing on top of the world. Suddenly alerted to a weight in his hand, he looked down and saw…_

A high-pitched version of 'Take Me out to the Ballgame' suddenly pierced the air, frying his morning-sensitive eardrums. A hand shot out from underneath the _oh so warm and comfortable_ blankets as he fumbled around on the nightstand, looking for the small device emitting the deafening sound.

When he finally found it, he picked up the phone without checking the caller ID… There was only one person who would logically be calling him so early in the morning… And there was only one person whose ring-tone was _that awful_. "Peter." Neal greeted, running his hand over his eyes as he slowly sat up. "What a pleasure to be hearing from you at…" he glanced at the alarm clock next to his bed before groaning. "Seriously? Peter, it's only 4:30 AM."

"There was a piece stolen."

"And I'm sure that it requires us to get to work on finding it _right away._"

Peter groaned. "Neal, just get your butt down here."

Neal rolled his eyes as he swung his legs over the side of the bed, putting the cell phone on speaker. "Seriously, Peter, what's the big deal about this piece?"

"The artist went missing as well… It's better to get a head start on these things."

"The artist was kidnapped?" He asked incredulously, suddenly much more interested. That was something that didn't happen every day.

"Get down here and you'll find out." Peter said brusquely before hanging up.

"Someone didn't have any coffee yet…" Neal grumbled, pulling on a suit carefully, making sure it didn't wrinkle. After all, just because he didn't get much sleep didn't mean he had to _look _like it.

* * *

><p>"Are we all here?" Peter asked, walking into the conference room with a file in his hands.<p>

Neal peered around, as did everyone else in the room (the whole white collar team, plus a few others who Neal assumed were from the kidnapping/missing persons division).

"Good. Now, we're here today because a very valuable piece has gone missing from the New York Museum of Contemporary Art, and because the artist of the same piece has gone missing as well." Peter began briefing as he slid the case files across the table to everyone.

Neal stifled a yawn as he grabbed his own. It was really too early to be thinking about anything other than sleeping. Actually, it was too early to be thinking about anything at all.

He opened the case file, and suddenly, all his sleepiness was gone.

"_The Poker Player_, by Sally Jackson, a somewhat grotesque concrete sculpture was stolen about two hours ago from the museum. About five hours earlier, Sally Jackson was reported missing." Peter leaned forward over the table, making eye contact with everyone but Neal, who was too busy attempting to disguise his horror at the situation. "This is no coincidence, people. We have to find Ms. Jackson, and we have to find the statue." Peter held up the picture of the woman, and everyone searched her face for clues which weren't there.

All Neal could do was stare hopelessly at the face of his mother, and hope that whatever had happened to her wasn't too horrible or irreversible.

* * *

><p><strong>I know that this chapter is short, I just wanted to end it before the inspiration ran out. This fic won't be too long, probably only three or four chapters or so. I'm not sure what type of response it will get, but it doesn't really matter too much, I'm just writing this to get that darn plot bunny out of my head.<strong>

**What do you want to happen next?**

**(I could use the input)**

**-Marie**


	2. Seaweed Brain and the Yankees

Neal cleared his throat, doing his best to hide his wide, panicked eyes. Nothing good could come of Peter suspecting him in anyway. There were reasons that Neal's world and Peter's world were held far, far away from each other…. Aside from, of course, the fact that Neal's world existed in the exact same city as Peter's.

He paid little to no attention as Peter continued the briefing, walking the entire task force through countless sets of pictures, facts and places to research Sally Jackson.

"The last thing I want to show you is a video… I'm not sure how exactly it was edited, but someone must have been able to…" Peter muttered, almost to himself, as he began to click around on his laptop. "Where did I put that file?" He mumbled, frowning at the screen.

The task force began to glance around the table warily, and Neal saw Jones raise an eyebrow at a man on loan from the cyber crimes unit, easily recognizable by his pocket protector.

"Do you… Do you need some help with that?" The man stuttered out, walking towards Peter somewhat hesitantly. At some other time, Neal might have let out a quiet chuckle at the poor man's terrified face, but it was around 5 AM, and his mother was missing… There was nothing to laugh about.

"I'm _fine_!" Peter growled at the cyber crime man, who shrank back in fear and then scurried off to a corner of the conference room, obviously very traumatized with his ordeal. At this, Neal could not suppress a slight roll of his eyes. It wasn't like Peter was _Medusa_, or a draken… There were much worse and scarier things out there than middle aged FBI agents with computer skills that were next to none. "I found it!" Said FBI agent cried triumphantly, opening up the file on his computer, and pointing to the screen that sat on the opposite wall of the conference room. "This is the museum, the night of the break in."

Neal observed as the tape began, showing a black and white view of _The Poker Player_. It was, indeed, a grotesque piece, and his lips were automatically pulled down into a frown as he beheld it. For a few moments, there was nothing happening on screen. The only thing showing that yes, time was indeed passing, was the small time monitor in the bottom left corner of the screen. 02:58:34… 02:59:45… 03:00:58… 03:01:27…

He began drumming his fingers against his thighs irritably, unable to suppress the twitchy feeling inside of him that demanded for him to do _something_. This was a waste of time, just watching the video… He needed to go, to find whoever did this, and to make them wish they had never been born.

Then, suddenly, there was a movement on screen. Not so much a movement, as a gathering of shadows. They seemed to be pulled from every corner of the room, swirling into one large mass before collapsing leaving…nothing? He frowned. For a second, he had been almost positive that he had known who had committed the crime, but now… Then, suddenly, the same shadows gathered around the sculpture. They began to swirl chaotically, drowning the statue in their depths, and when they finally submerged it, they suddenly disappeared, once again leaving nothing in their wake. Except for… what was that?

"What's that thing left on the stand?" Jones asked, squinting his eyes at the screen to help him discern the mystery object.

"It's a sticky note!" Peter said faux cheerfully.

"A _sticky note_?" Neal asked incredulously, raising an eyebrow in an effortless manner. It was a mannerism that he had picked up from his mother.

Instead of spending more time explaining just what the sticky note said, Peter instead spent a few more seconds at the laptop before the video disappeared off the screen and a yellow, generic sticky note appeared.

_Hey, Seaweed Brain. Your mom's missing (just in case you didn't know)._

_Consider this your alarm._

_PS: GO YANKEES!_

It was in frightfully messy handwriting, and it took everyone in the conference room about a minute to read it. It took Neal longer, as he had to take a moment to close his eyes and breathe after reading the first line… (It had been a while since he had been called by that nickname). Also, his dyslexia did not fare too well when paired with such messy handwriting (obviously written by a fellow dyslexic person).

"So, Seaweed Brain. That's got to be a code-name for Sally's son…" Diana mused. "Does she have a son?"

"She does indeed. You might remember him from about a decade or so back. Percy Jackson, the New York kid who was so troubled he kidnapped his mother, and went running across the United States shooting and blowing things up." Peter narrated cheerfully.

Neal could hardly contain a wince.

"Wait, wasn't that kid actually kidnapped, and was trying to escape from his kidnapper the whole time?" An agent whose name Neal had not yet caught spoke, and Neal wondered if sending the man flowers would be a little too over the top.

"Well, yes, but that story just never…" Peter paused. "It never clicked right with me."

"Where's the kid now? He's got to be out of college by now… Is he working?" Jones asked, flipping through Sally Jackson's file as he spoke.

Peter snapped his fingers. "That's the thing. Percy Jackson disappeared a few months after his sixteenth birthday, about nine years ago. No one's seen him since."

Diana frowned. "So, he's still alive? If this message is addressed to him…"

"Then it would make sense for him to be alive, yes."

"You mean, we don't have to just find Sally, we have to find her son too?" Jones asked incredulously. "He's been missing for nine years!"

"We'll just have to do our best then. Now, Frank, I wanted you to take a look at the video and see how someone could have hacked into the feed and edited it. Neal, I want you to talk to your underground contacts, see if any of them know anything about this. The rest of us will split up into teams to look for Sally Jackson, and the sculpture."

"Wait, Peter. What about the last line?" Diana asked, pointing to the 'Yankees' line.

"Well, that could mean one of two things… One, the thief is out of state and this is his first time visiting the Big Apple, or two, it's a code." Agent Burke summarized, glaring slightly at the post it.

"A code for what?" Neal asked, heart about to burst out of his chest even though he knew that Peter had no possible way of figuring out what it stood for…

"No clue. That's your job, remember?" Peter asked, as he sat back down at the table and leaned back over his laptop. All was still for a moment, before he looked back up. "What are you all waiting for? Go!"

Neal stood up quickly, as did the rest of the agents as they all headed towards the door in one massive, caffeine-fueled and sleep-deprived herd. None of them noticed the sudden ringing that came from Peter's cell… Other than Peter, that is.

"Wait, Neal!" Peter called to him as he attempted to make his escape.

"Yes, Peter?"

"Do you have any idea who might be behind this?" Peter asked him, leaning back in his chair some and staring at his phone as though it might hold some answer to life.

"Some, but no, not really. Why?"

"Because there's a guy on the phone taking responsibility for the theft. He wants to talk to you."

* * *

><p>Neal took the phone hesitantly and was about to put it up to his ear when Peter set it on the table and put it on speaker, at the same time, pressing a button on the side of the phone that recorded the conversation.<p>

"Hello?"

"Hi… _Neal_." An instantly recognizable voice spoke from the speaker, and it was all Neal could do to not laugh at the horrible insanity of it all.

"It seems you know my name. Can I ask what to call you?"

The next time the voice spoke it was not in English. He could instantly recognize the fluidness of the Ancient Greek, and it was like music to his ears, food to a starving man, sight to a blind one, and water to a dry, dry desert after a drought... After all the years of not hearing the cadence, the language seemed precious. "_You know what to call me, Perseus._" The voice chucked.

Debating between the pros and cons, Neal decided to go for it and answer… It was his mother on the line, after all. "_Hey, Death Breath… Care to tell me why you're calling Agent Peter Burke's cell phone instead of just IMing me?_" A glance at said agent revealed that he looked absolutely stupefied by the change in language.

"_Considering the fact that you were probably just in a room with a bunch of FBI agents, I figured an IM was out of the question. Go back to your apartment. I'll meet up with you there._"

He raised an eyebrow. "_And how would you know where my apartment is?_"

"_Someone had to keep Rachel company._"

"_She prophesized my __**apartment**__?_"

"_No… Her father's one of the most powerful men in New York. You honestly think she doesn't have the resources to find you? Then again, there's a reason you have the nickname that you do._" Then, in English, he spoke again. "An hour. Don't be late. Catch you later, Cuz."

Then the line went dead, and Neal was left alone in the conference room with a very confused and not very happy FBI Agent.

"And just who was that?" Peter fumed.

"That was…" Neal searched for a lie before deciding to just go for the truth. "That was my cousin."

Any expression that might have been on Peter's face was instantly replaced with shock. "Cousin? You have a cousin? And what language were you speaking?"

Neal laughed bitterly. "Oh, I have a ton of them. This one's just one of my closest. And it was a made up language we created when we were kids."

"And he stole Sally Jackson's piece?"

"I don't think so," Neal lied, "but I think he might know who did, and I'm set to meet with him in an hour, so we'll see."

"I'm coming with you." Peter said instantly, grabbing his suit jacket and instantly preparing to leave the conference room.

"Oh, no you're not. I'm not dangerous, but the same doesn't go for my cousin."

"All the more reason for you not to go alone."

"My cousin will not cooperate if I don't go alone, and he'll know if I'm not alone."

"At least take a wire!"

"There's no reason to, we'll be speaking our made-up language the whole time like we usually do." Neal lied before fixing Peter in a firm stare. "I'm not backing down on this. He's my cousin, I'm not going to see him arrested just because you were too afraid to let me go alone."

"He's dangerous, you said so yourself!"

"Not to me. I'm the closest thing he has to a sibling since his sister died. There's no way he's going to hurt me." Behind his back, Neal snapped his fingers, and tried to remember the last lesson Chiron had taught him.

Peter sighed. "Fine. But report back _right after_ you finish meeting with him."

"Sir, yes sir!" Neal mock-saluted and ran out the door quickly before Peter could break through the fog that had suddenly encased his better judgment. He basically sprinted all the way back to June's house, where he scurried up all the necessary stairs and found himself in his apartment with almost fifteen minutes to spare.

* * *

><p>"Did you really just let Caffrey go without any supervision?" Jones asked, leaning in the doorway of the conference room.<p>

Peter snorted. "I was actually tempted to for a moment for some reason… But then I managed to slip a bug into his pocket."

Jones grinned. "Smart."

* * *

><p>"Oh my gods, this cannot go well." Neal muttered to himself. "There's absolutely <em>no <em>way for this to go well."

"I think that's a rather opinionated statement." A voice from behind Neal said and he turned and faced his cousin.

"Nico, it's good to see you."

"Hey, _Neal_." The dark haired teenager grinned and Neal began to study him. The boy looked eighteen, but could probably pass for twenty if he really wanted to. His black hair was shaggy, but not long, and his dark eyes held the same type of madness/genius that Neal had seen years ago in the boy's father. He wore black, and a skull ring shimmered on his right hand. Nico had a grin on his face, obviously pleased with something.

"About the Neal thing…" He began.

Nico held up a hand and grinned. "So, you changed your name. Big whoop. My dad does it all the time… I mean, that whole Greece –slash- Rome thing? He didn't exactly come out of it with his identity completely intact."

Neal nodded, relieved.

"Still though," Nico continued, "It's a bit weird calling you Neal… I mean, what made you pick that out in the first place?"

"Well, at first it was Nathan Wright, then Nick Halden, and now Neal Caffrey."

Nico raised an eyebrow. "What's with all the N names?"

Neal could feel his face becoming more closed off, and he shrugged.

"Come on, Cuz. You've got to give me more than that. If I'm going to help you…" DiAngelo trailed off as he plopped down on Neal's couch.

"You're going to help me either way and you know it."

A chuckle came from the previously-serious teenager. He certainly wasn't like what Neal remembered… "Yeah, I am. But only because that blue cake? It was amazing."

Neal grinned at the memories before quickly sobering up. "Annabeth liked names that started with the letter N… We were talking about naming our kids Nick, Neal, Nathan, or something along those lines."

Nico nodded slowly and thoughtfully, sighing. "Dude, I'm sorry, but learning that, I can't keep calling you Neal. I really can't."

"Yeah, it's… fine. Just… Do what you must."

"Sounds good, Kelp Head."

"Oh, shut it, Death Breath."

"Fine." Nico sobered up.

Ne- Percy sighed. "Do you have any leads on her?"

"Not yet, but our favorite cousin is on it."

"Thalia? You got Thalia to help?"

"Thalia likes blue cake too!"

Percy laughed for a moment. "If only Grover was here, it would feel just like the old times… Except for..."

"Except for Annabeth. It's… really shaken you up, hasn't it?"

"My girlfriend died, Nico. The one girl I've ever loved _died_. So forgive me if I'm a little bitter!"

"It wasn't your fault."

"See, I would believe that, but she _drowned._ She _drowned, _Nico. And I couldn't even find her body!" Percy spat out, grabbing a bottle of wine and drinking straight from it in a completely out of character manner. It was unsophisticated, and not something Neal Caffrey would do in a million years, but it was something Percy Jackson would do, and that was all that really mattered.

"I didn't come here to make you go to therapy." Nico said finally, after Percy had guzzled down a fourth of the wine bottle. "I came here to talk about the incident which happened last night."

"You mean you-" Percy didn't have a chance to finish as the door was suddenly burst open.

"_Freeze! FBI!_" Peter shouted as he entered the room, gun drawn.

Percy saw Nico sigh deeply. "Please tell me you didn't just rely on goodwill."

"No, I used the…er… The Force." Percy answered after stealing a glance at Peter, who was still pointing his gun at Nico.

"And how long has it been since you used the Force last?"

Percy raised an eyebrow. "I don't see how that matters."

"It's been over five years, hasn't it." Nico stated, rolling his eyes.

"Allegedly." He answered cockily, flashing a grin at his cousin.

"_Enough!_" Peter yelled, still pointing his gun at Nico. "Neal, is this your cousin? He's so young! I thought you said he was dangerous!"

Nico gaped at Peter, and for a moment, Percy though he was going to summon his mumbo-jumbo army of undead soldiers and slaughter the FBI agent… But the moment passed. The dark haired teen instead shook off his shock and grinned at Percy. "Aww… You said I was dangerous? I'm so touched."

"I don't quite see how a teenager can be dangerous, Neal. Care to explain?" Peter asked nonchalantly, nevertheless, he was still pointing the gun at Nico.

"It's a long story." Percy-Who-Is-Actually-Neal stalled.

"No, no. It's a pretty quick one. See, I was born."

"And then…?" Peter asked.

"There's no 'and then'. I was born instantly scary." He boasted.

Percy/Neal snorted.

"Oh, do you have a problem with something I said, dearest cousin?"

"I seem to remember a…trading card game?" Neal/Percy hinted, flashing a grin at his cousin.

"You remember _nothing_. Is that clear?" The Son of Hades suddenly threatened, his eyes seeming to turn coal black.

"Crystal."

Peter groaned. "I've had enough of your games. You, you're under arrest for the kidnapping of Sally Jackson and the theft of the piece _the Poker Player_."

"Are you serious?" Nico asked, raising an eyebrow.

Peter suddenly lunged forward with handcuffs, but Nico was too fast. His skills were honed by years of killing and defeating horrid mythical monsters, and so he easily jumped out of the way. Peter was left floundering at the sudden speed the teenager had moved with.

"Gotta say, Neal. I expected Big Bad FBI Agent to have more skills than _that_."

"Oh, will you stop resisting arrest and just get in the hand-cuffs already, Death Breath?" A new voice asked from the still-open doorway, and Percy grinned as he caught sight of a fifteen year old dark haired girl in a silver parka and jeans.

"Pine-Cone Face, so nice of you to join us." Nico muttered sarcastically while holding his hands out for Peter to cuff them.

Agent Burke, too smart to look a gift horse in the mouth quickly did so, and began reciting the teenager's rights. All the while though, he was staring at the girl. "And who is this?" He finally asked when he was done giving the spiel to Nico.

"Meet Thalia, my other cousin." Neal/Percy smiled before going in to hug the girl. "You're still allowed hugs, right?" He asked quietly as the girl accepted the embrace.

"Only from those I want hugs from." She mumbled back while squeezing him tighter. "We missed you, Kelp Head."

"Yeah, I missed you guys too, Pine-Cone Face."

"How many cousins do you _have_?" Peter asked finally, while leading Nico out the door.

Percy/Neal frowned and looked at Thalia. "Not sure. How many?"

"Must be a couple hundred by now…"

Peter was suddenly nearly sprinting out of the room, perhaps scared that the rest of the cousins would show up soon.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: So... Remember how I said this would only be about three or four chapters? Turns out I lied. See, I started outlining where I want this story to go, and I'm currently on chapter 4, and it hasn't even gotten to the climax yet. Seems like this little fic will be about five or six... Anyways, I appreciate all the reviews and alerts, it's pretty great to know that there are people out there actually enjoying what I'm writing. <strong>

**If you have anything that's confusing you and you want cleared up, or something you want to happen, please review. Feedback is always appreciated.**

**-Marie **


	3. Interrogation of a Minor

**AN: Sorry it took me so long... I had finals and a lot of big projects, but I finally managed to finish this... I'm really glad you guys are all enjoying this! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson or White Collar... Wish I did, but I don't. **

* * *

><p>"We need to talk, Neal." Peter informed him as Nico was taken from them to the interrogation room.<p>

Neal sighed. "Yeah, I figured."

They sat down across from each other at the conference room table and Neal braced himself for the unpleasantness that was sure to follow.

"I heard your conversation with your cousin."

Percy gaped. "How?"

"Well, I slipped a bug into your pocket." Peter grinned as Neal reached into his pocket and did, indeed, take out a small listening device.

"So… You heard my conversation with Nico. What'd you think?" Neal asked, steeling himself for the horror that was sure to follow… Things had been said in that conversation which he really didn't want Peter to know about.

"I think I found out more about you in that one fifteen minute session than I did in all the years I was either chasing you or working with you."

Neal grinned charmingly, but slightly uneasily. "What can I say? I'm a private person."

Suddenly, Peter pounced. "Who's Annabeth?"

The grin disappeared, and Neal stayed silent.

"Neal, you need to tell me."

"I don't need to tell you anything. It's a private matter."

"Not if it's impacting your life."

"It's not."

Peter frowned. "Fine, then explain Kate."

"What?"

"You said Annabeth was the only girl you've ever really loved… What about Kate?"

Neal chucked quietly to himself before sighing, trying to decide whether to tell him or not. "Kate… She uh… She looked a lot like Annabeth. The only thing different was the hair."

"Kate was just a replacement?"

"I wouldn't say that…. But… Yes."

Peter thought for a minute before asking another question. "What's your real name?"

Neal stiffened in his seat. "I don't see how it matters, I haven't been going by it since I was sixteen."

The FBI agent leaned forward. "I'm not going to ask you again, Neal. Tell me what is your real name, or this little arrangement is over, and you're going back to prison."

Neal opened his mouth to find a way to get past the question without really answering it, but before he could, Jones barged into the room.

"Peter, you'll never guess what I found!"

"What, Jones?" Peter asked brusquely, reaching for the file that Jones offered him.

"Those two names you asked me to run, Percy and Annabeth, well I was running them while I was reading Percy Jackson's file, and guess what name turned up in there?"

Peter gaped at the paper before smiling slowly. "Annabeth Chase. Apparently, she was kidnapped with Percy Jackson." He set the file down on the table and looked at Neal, who looked as though he wanted to disappear into the earth. "Care to explain?"

"Fine. My name's Perseus Jackson. Percy for short. It's not like it really matters." Neal fibbed, leaning back in his chair casually.

Jones gaped at him. "_You're_ Percy Jackson? Sally Jackson's son?"

Percy nodded mutely.

"Your mom's been kidnapped, and you've done _nothing_?" Peter growled, aghast at the situation.

Percy jumped to his feet, the chair nearly falling over with the suddenness of the movement. "You're joking. You honestly think I'm going to let my mother be kidnapped without any repercussions? I've got half my family on their feet looking for her!"

"What about the sculpture?"

"The sculpture can go to Hades for all I care, it was modeled after my stepfather, who, by the way, wasn't my favorite person in the whole wide world!"

"The sculpture was modeled after Gabe Ugliano?" Jones muttered before examining something in the file. Finally, he nodded. "I see the resemblance."

"Fine, Ne- Percy. We'll talk about this later. First, is there anyone who would have motive to kidnap your mother?"

Percy nodded. "A lot. More than I can count."

"And who would have motive to steal the sculpture?"

"The sculpture was stolen to tell me that my mother was missing. I'm sure that once we find her, it'll be returned."

"How sure are you?"

Percy flashed a grin. "Positive."

Peter studied him before nodding. "Okay, I believe you. So we focus on Sally. Who are those people who would have motive to kidnap your mother?"

He frowned. "Honestly… The only one I can think of who could actually get away with it is Vincent Adler." **(1)**

"And how would he know who you were?"

Percy thought about explaining. Honestly, he did… but somehow, it didn't seem like a very good idea. '_So, he's kind of a Son of Hermes, and really evil. He looked up to this one guy named Luke before Luke turned out to be a good guy and so he went and learned all sorts of evil things from demigod criminals.' _"We share some relatives." He lied smoothly. "He must have recognized me."

"Are you that recognizable?"

"I didn't think I was, but apparently so."

Peter nodded slowly. "And I'm assuming that all these relatives are through your father's side, since we found no living relatives on your mother's."

"That is correct."

"You do realize that I'll still have to interrogate your cousin."

Percy sighed before gesturing. "Be my guest."

* * *

><p>"I have the right to a lawyer." Nico informed Peter.<p>

"Yes, you do… But I doubt you can get one in ti…" He trailed off as a tall, redheaded woman suddenly strolled into the interrogation room.

"Hi, so sorry I'm late. My name is Rachel Elizabeth Dare, and I represent Nico."

Close behind her, a handsome young man with brown hair and brown eyes followed.

"And who are _you_?" Peter asked the man, who grinned cheerfully.

"Hello, Suit. I'm the lawyer whose specialty is minors. I'm Ms. Dare's co-counsel."

Peter frowned. "Suit? Ne- Percy, is this guy related to Mozzie?"

Percy smirked. "You could say that."

"Oooh… Percy. So you finally told him your real name?" Rachel asked excitedly before stepping forward and hugging him. "By the way, it's good to see you in person."

He laughed, knowing exactly what she meant. "Yeah, you too. And you're a lawyer now? Whatever happened to being an environmental activist?"

"I'm an environmental lawyer," Rachel explained. "I'm just helping Nico out."

"You two… know each other?" Peter asked, gesturing between the two of them.

"Yes." Rachel and Percy answered at the same time.

"Care to elaborate?"

"Not really." They answered once again.

"Fine. Nico, do you understand all your rights?"

"I do."

"And do you wish to speak now?"

"About what?"

"I'll ask the questions."

Nico shrugged nonchalantly. "I guess. Go ahead."

"Where were you last night at ten?"

"I was at my dad's place."

"And how did you hear of Sally Jackson's kidnapping?"

Nico raised an eyebrow. "My uncle, Percy's dad, called my dad. My dad sent me to go check up on everything and see if she was really missing. She was."

"Did you have anything to do with the theft of the _Poker Player_?"

"I did not."

Peter looked at Nico before sighing and obviously giving up. "Who is currently out there looking for Sally Jackson?"

"People."

"And who are those people?"

"They're special people."

"Why are they special?"

"They're either really awesome, or related to me." Nico grinned cheekily. "Or both."

Peter sighed. "Do you have any relatives that might know where Sally Jackson is being kept?"

"Probably."

"Are you just going through a rebellious stage because of your dead sister?" Peter fired out, seemingly out of nowhere.

Something in Nico's face hardened, and his eyes began to burn with the same fire his father's domain was known for. "My sister has nothing to do with this." He then looked at Percy and hissed out in Ancient Greek. "_You told him about Bianca?_"

"_Just that I was the closest thing you had to a sibling since she died. He knows nothing else, I swear it."_

Peter confusedly followed the exchange, as did Rachel and the mysterious lawyer, though the lawyer had a certain twinkle in his eye...

"_Oh, do you now? Will you swear it on the River Styx?"_

"_See, I would, but the last time anything involved the River Styx, I had to take a bath in it, so I'll pass. But I swear to anything else, he knows nothing."_

Nico studied him. "I believe you." He turned back to Peter. "Look, whether or not I'm rebellious has absolutely nothing to do with anything that's currently occurring. Now, we can either find Aunt Sally, or we can sit around doing absolutely nothing."

"Aunt Sally? And how close were you to Sally Jackson?"

Nico glared at the FBI agent. "Seeing as my mother died when I was just a kid, and her only son disappeared, we got kind of close. Blue chocolate chip cookies and all that."

Percy's mouth began to water. "She still makes those?"

"Trust me. They're better than ever."

Suddenly, Percy thought of something. "Wait, what about Paul Blofis? Where's he in all this?"

"That's kind of a long story."

"The man was about to become my stepfather, I think I need to know if something happened to him."

"They got into an argument a few years back… He said some things about your dad, and your mom didn't take it too well. But more than that, he said some stuff er… about you."

Percy nodded thoughtfully, trying to digest the information.

Peter groaned. "How is this in any way relevant?"

"That's exactly the point I was trying to make!" Nico protested. "None of this is relevant! If we can just find out where Aunt Sally is, I can go get her."

Rachel furrowed her brow. "How?"

"The Yankees and I are unstoppable."

"You will just endanger Sally Jackson, and I can't let a minor go into a harmful situation." Peter protested. "What if you get killed?"

Nico shrugged. "Then I guess I'll see my mom earlier than planned."

"You could be _killed_!"

"'Fear of death is naught but fear of the unknown.'" Nico quipped. "I don't have much to fear."

"Agent Burke, I must ask you to release my client. So far, you have shown no evidence necessary to hold him or to charge him with a crime." Rachel spoke professionally and quickly, distracting Peter from Nico's confusing comment.

"Fine. But he's going to stay where I can see him." Peter bargained.

"I'm afraid I can't promise that, Suit." The mysterious lawyer spoke up. "Nico's father has requested his presence, and I'm not one to interfere in family matters."

Nico's eyebrows shot up, but he didn't say anything.

"Fine then. But when we find Sally, and we will, I want proof that he's nowhere near her." Peter insisted.

Nico grinned confidently. "That's just fine with me."

* * *

><p>Percy sighed as he personally escorted Nico from the building. "Find my mom, Nico, please." He begged.<p>

"Wow. You really are a Seaweed Brain. Look, you might have left, but I didn't. She's my aunt, do you really think I'd just drop her? Right when I get into an alley or something, I'm going to travel to my dad, and hear where she is. Then, I'll swoop in with the baseball hat and save the day."

"Thanks Nico. Really, thanks. Just one condition."

Nico sighed regretfully. "You want to come along…"

"Yes."

"No."

"She's my mom, Nico."

"Do you still have that little after-affect from the bath you took in the Styx?"

"Yep."

"Then I guess we can work something out." Nico replied confidently before peering back at Rachel and the mysterious lawyer, who were following them steps behind, and in their own conversation. "But… Who's the other guy? I can tell he's one of us, but…"

"His name is Mozzie… He's a freakishly smart son of Aphrodite." Percy grinned as he explained the man.

As the little posse ventured into a dark alley, Nico just so happened to glance back as the tall, dark haired man changed suddenly into a short, balding one, his features morphing with incredible speed. "What?" He gasped, looking at Percy.

"He's a pretty gifted shape-changer… He's one of Aphrodite's favorites."

Mozzie grinned at them, much less charming in his current form than he had been a few seconds previously. "I'm also a very good piano player."

Nico nodded approvingly. "Let me guess, you joined Percy on his 'I'm going to tour the world for Annabeth and steal some random things' tour."

"Good guess."

"Whoever said it was for Annabeth?" Percy asked, wincing slightly as the name rolled out.

"It's kind of obvious, Percy. Just accept that you're a hopeless romantic and move on…" Mozzie prompted him. "After all, if _anyone _can spot hopeless romantics, it's me."

Percy smirked sadly. "Yeah, yeah, I suppose I am." He felt the deep ache of sadness pressing in on his chest, but instead of reacting toward it, he simply pushed it away and watched as Nico stepped into the shadows and disappeared.

* * *

><p>"Did you look up more about Nea- I mean, Percy?" Peter asked Jones, who was staring intently at a computer.<p>

"A lot. What do you want to hear?"

"Annabeth. Who was she?"

"Annabeth Chase, she was kidnapped along with Percy Jackson, and they went to the same summer camp after that for many years. She died a little while after Percy turned sixteen."

Peter frowned. He had overheard that she was dead, but he had never seen any sign in Percy that his first love had died… "How?"

"Says here she drowned in the Atlantic, but her body was never found. There were a lot of witnesses to her drowning though, so there wasn't a murder investigation."

"Yeah, they mentioned that in the conversation… Just wanted to see how it held up. Is there anything about a Nico?"

Jones frowned. "Nothing I can find."

"How about Percy's father?"

"No, nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing… Peter, the man's a ghost. If it wasn't for Percy being born, I'd have said that the man never existed."

Peter groaned loudly. "Wait, did you search for a Thalia?"

"Who is that?"

"Percy's other cousin."

Jones' eyebrows flew up. "He has _more_?"

"Apparently."

Jones entered the name into the database and then frowned when the results came up. "Nothing. There's no mention of her in any of Percy's files or in the database of that summer camp that he went to."

"Could you search the name Grover in that database?"

"I could but I don't think anything is going to… Show up. Peter, I've got something."

"What?"

"Grover Underwood was the third kid kidnapped, and he also went to the same summer camp Percy did."

Peter grinned. "What else do you have on him?"

Jones sighed. "Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

Peter felt like punching something. "So, basically, even though we've finally found out his real name, for all intents and purposes Percy is even more mysterious than when we didn't know anything.

"Basically, yeah."

Peter rested his hand in his hands. "Why me?"

* * *

><p><strong>(1): Yes, I know he's dead, but I didn't want to create a whole new adversary along with a new backstory… Everything happened as it did in the White Collar universe: Adler disappeared with a bunch of people's money, but, to better tie in with Percy Jackson, let's just say he was another son of Hermes with a grudge against Olympus, without the morality of Luke.<strong>

**Thanks so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed it... If you have any ideas, go ahead and review or PM me, I'd love to get a sense of what you guys want from this story.**

**-Marie**


	4. A Rose By Any Other Name

**AN: I have no excuses... Or at least, I don't have any you guys would actually want to hear. Sorry this took so long, and thank you for all of the wonderful reviews and story-alerts!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own White Collar or Percy Jackson in any way, shape or form. **

* * *

><p>"Wow. You were really curious about Percy, weren't you?" A voice from the doorway spoke and Peter turned quickly, fighting off the déjà vu that came from the movement. There, in all her teenager glory, stood Thalia, still in her silver parka and jeans.<p>

"What do you mean?" Peter spoke, eyeing her closely to see if she was a threat. After all, if Nico was a threat, it wasn't hard to assume the other cousin was too.

"What I _mean_ is that you dug through his file, and searched _all_ around for everyone he ever mentioned in any conversations."

Peter narrowed his eyes. "And how would you know about that?"

The girl scoffed. "Please. One of my best friends could rig up an internet connection in the Antarctic with nothing but a calculator. He showed me how to tell if my name is searched before he... I know when someone's looking around for me."

"And what, exactly, is your name?" Jones asked.

"I'm Thalia." The girl grinned at him. "Nice to meet you."

"Do you have a last name, Thalia?" Peter asked, so sick of the games that all of Percy's relatives and friends seemed to enjoy playing oh so very much.

"I do."

"And what is it?"

"I don't use my last name… I'm trying to get to that point where my last name doesn't really matter, like Beyonce."

"How about we make a deal?" Peter spoke, wondering if he was about to regret his proposal.

Thalia grinned. "What kind of deal?"

"You tell me your last name, and I'll tell you something you want to know."

The girl threw back her head and laughed, it was a short and quick laugh, deadly almost, like… like lightning. "And what information do you have that I would possibly want to know?"

"I can tell you about what Percy's been doing all those years he was missing."

"I can tell you that too. I keep an eye on my family, Agent Burke."

"I can tell you what he was arrested for."

"Bond forgery, try again."

"I can tell you anything!"

Thalia grinned. "Anything?"

Peter swallowed nervously. "Anything that doesn't compromise national security."

"Okay, Peter, I have something you can tell me."

"What?"

"So, I had this friend, she lived with her dad. And she was really, really troubled because not only was her mom dead, but she was never told how she died. Her mom was some celebrity, and when she died, everyone kept all the details very hush hush, and she was never told, since, like I said, she was living with her dad at the time. My friend died about twelve years ago, Agent Burke, and before she died she asked me to find out how her mom died."

"That's doable." Peter nodded (though he frowned at the 'twelve years' remark, as Thalia didn't look anywhere near old enough to really remember anything that happened that long ago) and then took the laptop Jones had been using. "What was your friend's mom's name?"

"Alicia Grace."

Peter entered the name into the search engine and then asked a few more questions to narrow down the field. (What year did she die, what year was she born, where did she live?...etc…) "Alicia Ann Grace, died May 21st 1998 in a car accident. The toxicology reports indicate that she had very high levels of alcohol in her system."

"She was drunk."

"Yes. Now tell me your last name."

Thalia grinned snarkily and turned around to begin walking away. "I already did."

Peter frowned before turning back to the laptop, where something caught his eye. Under the 'relations' section of Alicia Grace's file, there was a daughter listed… And her name just so happened to be Thalia.

Jones frowned. "She didn't tell us her last name, did she?"

"It was her mom, not her friend's that died. The only thing is… According to this, Thalia Grace should be twenty eight by now."

"That's… not possible. The girl is sixteen, Peter."

"I know that." Peter said, staring at the doorway through which Thalia had disappeared. "So, how is she twenty eight?"

* * *

><p>Percy was panicking. Nico had been gone over half an hour and he was wondering if the whole 'you let my sister die' thing had somehow turned into a 'I'm going to let your mother die, no matter how awesome her cookies are' thing. He could have hit himself for thinking that, since there was absolutely no way that Nico was that vengeful, especially toward his mother, but the thoughts were somehow planted in his mind, and he found himself wandering on back to them every minute that the dark boy didn't return.<p>

"What possible reason could he have for not being here?" Percy wondered, pacing back and forth in his apartment. "Mrs. O'Leary could have eaten him… Or maybe Alecto finally had enough of him and caged him up with some tiger or maybe even the minotaur… His dad could have forbidden him to go, maybe Zeus turned _him_ into a pine tree…"

"Or maybe he stopped at McDonald's to pick up some food." Nico's voice came from behind him and Percy whirled around just in time to catch the bag being thrown at his face. "You're welcome by the way."

Grinning at the boy, Percy opened the bag and dug into its contents. "Man, I haven't had any of this in _years_." He moaned around a mouthful of fries.

"Too busy with all that fancy cuisine?"

"Had to keep up the image somehow… Did you find her?" Percy asked while taking a huge bite out of his big mac.

"I did…"

"Then, let's go get her!"

"It's not that simple."

"Why isn't it that simple? You put on the Yankee hat that you somehow got from Annabeth before she… then we shadow travel there, grab my mom, and come back here!"

"Like I said, not that simple."

"Why isn't it that simple?" The McDonald's meal lay forgotten.

"She's in a hiding place that's very well designed and underground… I don't know what it looks like on the inside, therefore I can't shadow travel inside of it accurately… I might accidentally trap myself in a wall or something."

Percy groaned. "So, we find the designer, or the architect, we interrogate them, or force them to give up some pictures or something, and we get my mom back!"

Nico smiled sheepishly. "Still not that simple."

"_Why is it not that simple_?" Percy yelled.

"It was designed by someone who… knew what they were doing."

"Who? Who is this _elusive designer_ that the freaking _Son of Hades_ can't track down?"

"I can track her down."

"Then why don't you? Oh, wait, I know the answer! It's _not that simple_."

"We know her, Percy."

"And why in _Hades_ is that a bad thing?"

Nico breathed in deeply before shutting his eyes. "I don't want to tell you this. Really. I really, really, _really_ don't."

Percy's eyes flared. "Tell me, or you're going to find out just how _loyal_ Riptide is, returning to my pocket through all these years…"

"It's Annabeth."

There was silence.

"It's Annabeth, Percy… somehow, she's… alive."

* * *

><p>Thalia winced from outside the door, where she had been listening in with Mozzie and Rachel. "That's not going to go over well…" She muttered before she realized what had just been said. "Wait, she's alive? <em>How<em>?"

Mozzie's eyes widened and he began cursing under his breath. "This is not good, not good at all."

"Why?" Rachel and Thalia demanded.

"Percy's a hopeless romantic… He had this big, passionate, whirlwind romance with Kate, just because she looked like Annabeth. If Annabeth is really alive, and just for some reason didn't care enough about Percy to let him know that, it'll crush him."

"Maybe we should pay her a little visit." Thalia grinned as she cracked her knuckles.

"I think this is something Percy has to deal with alone." Rachel murmured, though when Thalia glanced at her incredulously, she noticed that the red-head's eyes were blazing with the same dark emerald color as Greek fire. "And once he deals with it, we'll be there to _finish_ dealing with it."

* * *

><p>Nico stared at Percy, who was staring at the floor. A knock sounded at the door. "Is everything okay in there?" Thalia cried, obviously listening in, but Nico couldn't bring himself to care.<p>

"I think I broke him!" He yelled back, and the door swung open as Mozzie, Thalia and Rachel burst into the room.

They crowded around the seated form of Percy, who was still staring at the floor as if it were the most interestingly fascinating thing in the room… For Hades' sake, he hadn't even blinked since Nico had told him!

Rachel put out a finger to poke him but Mozzie irritably slapped it away.

"Like I said," he addressed Thalia and Rachel. "He's broken."

"Do you think maybe we should do something to snap him out of it?" Rachel asked, studying Percy warily.

"Way ahead of you." Nico answered, returning from the sink (though no one had registered his absence) with a full glass of water. "Stand back… We don't know how Seaweed Brain will react in his element."

Rachel, Thalia and Mozzie took a few steps back, and Nico grinned widely at them before splashing the water into Percy's face. Suddenly, the calm was broken as Percy leaped up, and dried himself off within seconds. It seemed he hadn't forgotten his abilities, after all.

"What do you _mean_ she's _alive_?" He shouted and the water droplets that had sunk into the carpet were suddenly lifted into the air, where they hung like strangely ominous diamonds.

"I mean that her heart is currently beating, her brain is active, and her soul is still present inside her body." Nico answered, stepping back so he was as far away from Percy as the others.

"But, how could she be _alive_? I saw her drown! And why wouldn't she tell me?"

Nico took a deep breath. "Percy, I think you should sit down for this, or your little Water Droplets of Doom will decapitate someone. Seriously."

Percy sat, and stared at Nico, wide-eyed. He looked like a puppy that had just been dropped out of a third story window and kicked repeatedly. "How could she be alive, Nico?"

"From what I can tell, she was dragged down into the ocean, in what you saw as a drowning, but was really a deliberate homicidal act. Whoever did it quickly stole her away and somehow caused complete and utter amnesia. She was then tossed up on shore where she was found by some kindhearted folks. She was adopted, renamed, and never remembered who she used to be. She then went to college and became a very good architect, sought after for many reasons. Her designs were both practical, and beautiful."

What sounded like a laugh or a sob suddenly burst out from Percy's throat. "She's an architect, practical, beautiful… It's just like her." He bit his lip and hid his face in his hands.

"Let's give him some time." Thalia murmured and the others agreed as they went out into the hallway.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry about the length of this chapter, but I wanted to get this up quickly so I could start writing the next one. I was a little unsure of how I wanted to deal with Annabeth, but I think that she's kind of irreplaceable in Percy's life, and (let's face it), I'm a sucker for a happy ending.<strong>


	5. Introducing the Grand Miss Thina

**AN: No excuses here... I'm an awful, awful person, and you can all yell at me in reviews/PMs/rants in your head. Seriously, I'm sorry.**

**Disclaimer: Perhaps if I was Rick Riordan, or the owner of White Collar I would update faster...**

* * *

><p>Percy was left all alone in the room, sitting in a chair with his head bowed. He bit his lip and sighed, knowing what he had to do. He walked over to the rarely used fire place and flicked the switch, glad for the automatic gas system built in. Walking over to the fridge, he grabbed an uneaten sandwich he had been saving for later and threw it in.<p>

"Poseidon." He spoke before whispering his prayer to his father, the first one since Annabeth had allegedly drowned, and neither he nor his father had been able to rescue her, or even to find her body. "_Hey dad, it's me. I know it's been a while, and I'm sorry for blaming you for something which you really had no control over. I don't know who did that to Annabeth, but rest assured, when I find them, they'll wish they had never messed with a Son of Poseidon. I'm pretty sure you've heard about Mom being kidnapped, and as soon as we can find Annabeth, we'll figure out where she is and Nico and I will go get her. I'm sorry for these past few years, but I hope you know that as always, I am your son first, and everything else second. I love you dad, and I'll get them back, I promise."_

A warm breeze swept over him, smelling of salt and the ocean. He grinned to himself. Apparently, his father hadn't forgotten about him.

Then, sinking back into a chair, he laid his head back and began to think, using none of his ADHD-Percy-Jackson-Style-Do-First-Think-Later technique, instead focusing directly on his Oh-So-Very-Logical-Neal-Caffrey-Think-Absolutely-Everything-Through-To-A-Point-Where-It's-More-Than-A-Bit-Annoying technique.

Amnesia was a type of madness, was it not? Percy had seen Mr. D cure Chris, Clarisse's long-term boyfriend (or at least he had been when Percy had last seen them, he made a mental note to ask Nico whether or not the couple was still together), with a snap of his fingers. It should be a small matter to "cure" Annabeth. Then again, if Annabeth had been captured and brainwashed (or at least made to forget) by an unknown enemy (which was the only likely scenario, in Percy's mind), it might be likely that Mr. D would be unable to help.

Annabeth would surely help if her memories returned, as she was always an admirably loyal person (not to mention a huge fan of Percy's mother, and her cookies), but if they did not… If they did not then Percy could easily convince Peter to bring her in for questioning and hope that she would open up to the FBI and not preach some confidentiality agreement.

So, that would help Percy get her mother back… But what then?

What if Annabeth was in a relationship?

What if she was married?

What if, once her memories were recovered, she wanted absolutely nothing to do with Percy?

What if, once she found out the crimes Percy had committed, she was disgusted?

What if she never got her memories back?

What if she was on the 'dark side'?

What if she was in league with Adler?

What if she went to jail?

Squeezing his eyes shut tightly and massaging his temples with his fingers, Percy somehow managed to cram his thoughts into a small corner of his mind where they would not interfere. He then stood up and walked to the door, opening it violently and grinning at Thalia, Rachel, Mozzie and Nico when they fell in, as they had all been eavesdropping.

"Having fun there?" He asked them.

"Oodles." Thalia snapped back, getting up and dusting off her parka, before wincing once she saw how Percy looked.

Mozzie's eyebrows flew up and he gaped in horror at Percy. "Oh my gods, Percy. _What_ did you do to your hair?"

"My hair?"

Mozzie shuddered in revulsion and pointed at a mirror, all the while refusing to look back at Percy after the initial glance.

"You're acting like I'm Medusa."

Nico snorted, amusement dancing in his coal black eyes. "With that hair, you might as well be."

Walking calmly to the mirror, trying not to imagine what his hair might look like, Percy grinned briefly at the considerably lightened atmosphere in the room. His grin vanished, however, when he looked into the bathroom mirror, and a gargoyle was staring back.

His hair, so precisely gelled and styled just five or so minutes ago, was in disarray. Some of it was sticking straight up, other parts of it were sticking out, or back, or lying straight across his head in the opposite direction of where it should have been. Diving for the comb on the counter, Percy quickly styled his hair back to the way it should have always been… With the help of what was probably an unhealthy amount of hair product, his hair was saved. He gave a relieved sigh when the crisis was over.

"Did you get a picture?" Nico was asking Rachel. "Please tell me you got a picture."

The oracle sighed. "Sorry, Nico… I couldn't get my mind to think enough to whip my phone out, can you ever forgive me?"

The dark eyed teen glared at her. "No, I don't think I can. That was the opportunity of a lifetime!"

"I know Nico… Hey, what if I email you that one photo from camp when we found Percy cuddling with a stuffed animal dolphin?" She suggested.

Nico nodded thoughtfully. "I guess that could work."

Percy groaned. "I thought you deleted that."

"Nope!"

"So, Seaweed Brain… In the absence of our resident Wise Girl, did you think of a plan?" Thalia prodded him.

Percy grinned. "Of course. The Boyfriend of a Daughter of Athena always has a plan."

* * *

><p>"Hey, boss, I've got something weird." Jones informed Peter, who was immediately at his side.<p>

"What?"

"Thalia Grace's father is the same as Percy's. He absolutely doesn't exist. I'm thinking that with Nico, whoever he is, his father doesn't exist either."

Peter nodded thoughtfully. "What type of people are so high up that they aren't on birth certificates?"

"Maybe they're in the mob? Percy, Thalia and Nico all have vaguely Italian features… They all have black hair…"

"It's a good theory. It would explain why they're so scared to cross them, and how they could possibly know where Percy's mother is."

In the middle of their very intense thinking session, the phone suddenly rang, and Peter picked it up quickly after noticing who the caller was. "Percy," he greeted, the name sounding foreign on his lips. "Have you found out the location of your mother?"

"Vaguely. I know she's underground, in a very well-designed fortress belonging to Vincent Adler. I also know that it's a _secret_ fortress, if you can believe that."

"A secret fortress." Peter stated; his disbelief evident in his voice.

"Yes."

"You expect me to believe that."

"I expect you to at least hear me out before you call the mental hospital."

"Okay, what else?"

"The plans or blueprints aren't going to be in city hall, but we know who the designer slash architect is, so we can just bring her in to interrogate her…"

Peter sighed. "Fine. But it's not going to be an arrest, just a questioning. What's her name?"

Peter heard whispering in the background and could vaguely make out Nico's voice before Percy spoke again into the phone. "It's Shannon Thina." This time, when Percy spoke to Nico, or whoever was there with him, he could vaguely make out the words. "Thina? Really?"

Ignoring it, Peter quickly repeated the name to Jones, who searched her name in the FBI's all-knowing database. She was quickly found when Percy mentioned a few key things, such as where she lived and what she looked like. However, from the halting flow of information, Peter suspected that it was really Nico speaking to him, using Percy as a middle-man.

"Okay, she's a successful architect with a firm here in New York. I'll go pay her a visit."

"You? As in you alone? As in without me?" Percy spoke incredulously.

"You're involved personally with this case, I can't let you go with me into the public eye… You can, however, question her with me when I bring her back."

There was speaking in the background and Peter could hear arguing before the phone was, obviously, torn away from Percy.

"Hi," a vaguely familiar female voice spoke. "It's Rachel Dare… I request that I be present as well."

"On what grounds?"

"On the grounds that Percy is an idiot who is so emotional at the moment that he might do something _abnormally_ stupid, even for him, without my guidance."

Peter thought for a moment before shrugging. He couldn't see any harm in the idea. "I'll allow it. Goodbye, Miss Dare."

"Goodbye, Agent Burke, and thank you!"

* * *

><p>"Hi, my name is Agent Peter Burke, this is Agent Jones, we're with the FBI. We're here to speak with Shannon Thina." Peter approached the red haired secretary, flashing his badge at her along with a polite smile.<p>

The secretary took a look at his badge and immediately grabbed the phone. "Miss Thina? There's two agents with the FBI here in the lobby waiting to see you. All right, I'll send him up." She then stood up from her desk and smoothed down her skirt, flashing a grin at Peter. "I'll show you to Miss Thina's office, please follow me."

She walked off, and Peter, along with Jones followed her to a very light, airy looking office with floor to ceiling windows that showcased a fantastic view of the Hudson River. A blonde woman was sitting at the desk, furiously sketching out something on a sheet of paper. She flushed when she saw them standing in the doorway.

"Thanks, Chelsea…" She dismissed the secretary. "Hello, I'm Shannon Thina, I understand you're here to speak to me?" She spoke, walking from around her desk to shake hands with Peter and Jones.

"Yes, I'm Agent Peter Burke, this is Agent Clinton Jones, we're here to speak to you about a design you made for a man named Vincent Adler?" While he spoke, Peter examined her face. She looked horribly familiar, so familiar, in fact, that he found himself nearly staring at her.

She nodded slowly, frowning as she did so. "The Adler design… You know, I never felt quite right about that one."

"Why?"

"When Adler came to me, he asked me to design what was basically a fortress. He asked me to build him a labyrinth. An un-navigable maze that was even _underground._ He assured me that it was purely for a vault, since he had a lot of valuable art and other items, but it seemed too much like a prison for my liking."

"If you didn't want to build it, why did you?" Peter asked, and she shrugged guiltily.

"Thing is, I was very inspired by the whole idea. For whatever reason, while designing that… I felt like I was closer to my past than I had ever been before."

"Your past?" Jones asked skeptically. "You designed an underground fortress to feel better about your _past_?"

Shannon's grey eyes flashed dangerously, and Peter nearly took a step back, recognizing the danger hidden.

"Agent Jones, do you see that river in my window? Nine years ago, I was fished out of it, hypothermic and barely alive. The couple who found me adopted me, and all was well except for _one_ problem. I did not and still do not remember anything from before I woke up in the hospital. So, yes. Feeling close to my past was important for me. If you have a problem with that, _Agent_, I would appreciate you keeping your thoughts to yourself."

"You don't remember _anything_?" Peter asked her, surprised.

She shrugged. "I have dreams sometimes, but unless you count dreams of random jets of water nearly knocking down the Empire Building as memories, then no. I don't."

"So, you designed the fortress for Adler… Do you have any idea what it looks like, or where it is?" Peter spoke, still scrutinizing her to try to figure out where he knew her from.

Shannon grinned. "Why, of course, Agent Burke. I have all the documents detailing absolutely everything about that fortress."

"Would you mind coming into the FBI building then?"

She nodded. "Of course, but may I ask, why all the fuss about the Adler building?"

Peter took a deep breath. "We have reason to believe that there is a woman being held there against her will."

Shannon showed no reaction other than a slight frown. "Well then, let's go to the FBI."

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you're okay with this?" Rachel pestered Percy for the umpteenth time as they stood in the conference room.<p>

"I'll be fine." Percy assured her though he did not, in fact, feel very okay. "And I know the plan. Don't tell her anything, don't let anything slip. I can tell her who she really is when all this is over and my mom is home."

Rachel nodded. "Now, Peter will be referring to you as Neal Caffrey, since you're only Percy unofficially."

"I know."

"You can't even give her a hint."

"I know."

"There's little to no chance that seeing you will make her remember, so don't worry."

"I'm not worried about that."

Rachel groaned. "Then what _are_ you worried about?"

"Nothing."

"_Percy_."

"What if I let something slip? Peter can't know… If he suspects, he might take me off this case, and that will make it that much harder to get my mom back."

Rachel thought for a moment. "Hmmm… You and Annabeth were in disguise a few times, right?"

"What?"

"A few times, when you were on a quest or whatever, you lied about your identities, right?"

"Yes…"

"And that's how you got your start as a con artist, correct?"

"Alleged con artist, but yes."

"So, pretend you're running a con with Annabeth. You've been caught or whatever, and now you're pretending not to know each other. You can't let anything slip or else it will mean prison, or at least an angry minotaur."

Percy nodded slowly, staring at the floor, his eyes far away. "That sounds reasonable."

"It's beyond reasonable. It is pure genius."

He grinned at her and she opened her mouth to speak once more but before she could, the door of the conference room opened and two people stepped in.

Percy turned slowly, and for the first time in nine years, faced the first and only girl he had lost his heart to.

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><p><strong>AN: Yes, it's a cliffhanger. I know, boo me. I'm horrible... I've already given permission for all of you to yell at me though, so feel free to go ahead and do that. Now, I need some feedback... Should Annabeth recognize him? Because I've got two completely different outlines for each scenario, and I'm not quite sure which one I like more... <strong>

**The next update should be up sooner than this one was (once again, I am so, so sorry).**

**Sorry again,**

**-Marie**


	6. The Mysterious Necklace Society

**AN: Don't kill me. I'm sorry it took so long to update, but LOOK! It's a chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing.**

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><p>"Hi, I'm Neal Caffrey, it's nice to meet you." Neal stepped forward and shook Annabe-Shannon's hand. He tried not to focus on the fact that she was wearing a necklace with an owl charm on it…along with a few beads which looked very (<em>very<em>) familiar.

"Shannon Thina, really nice to meet you too. Are you an agent?"

Neal winced good-naturely, though in reality, he felt as though his whole life was on the life, depending on what Annabeth-Now-Shannon thought of him. "I'm a CI."

"You're a criminal consultant? For the FBI? That's fairly impressive." Shannon smiled at him and for a moment, he felt as though he was flying (without any fear of being hit by lightning).

He laughed. "Not many people think so, but I thank you for the compliment."

Shannon studied him carefully, and he had to keep reminding himself that it was _Shannon_ looking at him. No matter how familiarly her blonde curls glistened in the sun, or the way her grey eyes shined, wise beyond her years, it wasn't Annabeth looking at him. It was Shannon, though she may be in Annabeth's body, it was Shannon. "Do I know you from somewhere? You look really familiar…"

Neal smiled easily at her. "A pretty thing like you? I'm sure I'd remember." And he did. He remembered everything. But Annab-Shannon didn't need to know that.

"You probably saw his picture in the newspaper… His arrest was a pretty big deal." Peter interjected.

"Stop bragging, Agent Burke, it's beneath you." Neal grinned, though he was wondering if the second mention of his criminal past would somehow change Shannon's opinion of him.

"Perhaps…" Shannon spoke thoughtfully while playing around with the owl charm on her necklace. It was then that Rachel cleared her throat awkwardly… She had never been very good at handling awkward silences.

"Hi, I'm Rachel Dare."

"Shannon Thina… Are you a CI or an agent?"

Rachel laughed. "I'm actually one of Neal's friends… I'm just here to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Why would he do that?"

"His family's in town… It's enough to get anyone on edge." Rachel sent the girl a wink, and Shannon smiled, though it seemed slightly forced as her brow was furrowed. Neal prayed that she didn't suddenly remember Rachel.

"So, as far as I understand, you have the designs for the Adler building, correct?" Neal asked, grinning at Shannon as they all sat down at the conference table.

"Yes, I do. The only thing is, I don't exactly know where it is." She admitted, sliding a folder across the table, which Neal picked up and looked through. He tried not to gape when he realized that many of the designs were identical to rooms in the Labyrinth, or designs from Daedalus's laptop. It proved that she at least, did remember _something_… Even if not consciously.

"Wow. It's really complex… Peter, have you seen this?"

The agent nodded. "It seems to me, we'll need a princess and a roll of string to navigate it." Rachel looked as though she was trying not to laugh or be flattered. She had, of course, been the 'princess' during the Labyrinth quest, and she knew it.

Shannon smiled slightly. "I thought about all that, which is why I designed a kind of cheat entrance. I hid it in the workings, so it wouldn't be obvious to anyone building it, but it just seemed too much like a prison to me, so I decided that it was the right thing to do."

Neal stared at the designs. "Where is it?"

"Right there." Anna-Shannon pointed. "See that hole for air? It's a lot larger than it needs to be, and from there, you have access to the center of the fortress, where you can figure out how to get anywhere else."

"It's genius." Neal breathed, studying the plans, and in that moment he was more sure than ever that the woman sitting before him could not be anyone other than his Wise Girl.

"It's all very well and good, but we still have no clue where the location of it is. It could be in _Wisconsin_ for all we know." Peter reminded them.

Rachel smiled mysteriously. "Oh, don't worry about that. Neal's family is pretty good with finding such things."

"They should be. I have a feeling he's not the only criminal." Peter muttered under his breath.

Neal raised his eyebrows amusingly while someone leaped to his defense. Surprisingly, it wasn't Rachel.

"Agent Burke, I find that completely inappropriate and _beyond_ rude." Shannon spoke with a frown. "How could you possibly infer _anything_ about his family?"

"You haven't met his cousins." Peter defended himself and crossed his arms.

"It's not of importance, Miss Thina. All that matters is finding Sally Jackson as soon as possible." Neal spoke, though his insides were humming from happiness. Though Annabeth was actually somewhat defending herself (as twisted as it was to think about, his family _was_ her family), she didn't know it, and that meant that she was directly defending _him_.

"Sally Jackson?" Shannon asked, her eyes widening.

"Yes, do you know her?" Peter pressed, searching for a connection in Sally Jackson's file.

"No… No. I don't think so… Just, the name sounds really familiar." Rachel and Neal exchanged a quick glance, which Peter caught, but didn't comment on.

"She was in the papers before for a sculpture she had created… Perhaps that's where you heard of her." Neal suggested, his heart pounding from the lie.

"No, it sounds familiar in the way that architecture felt familiar… There's some connection to it from before I was Shannon Thina." Neal gulped but decided to speak.

"If so, then maybe when we find her, she can explain the connection."

"A good a plan as any, I suppose." Shannon agreed, though her face was still thoughtful.

"Who are you going to send to find out the location?" Peter asked Neal, sensing the need for a subject change. "Nico or Thalia?"

"Nico already knows, though if she wished, Thalia could find out within a few hours." Neal spoke, grinning.

Shannon started a bit at the names, then looked beyond confused as to why she had been startled. At that moment, Neal could have hit Peter for his slip-up. It would be better for now if Annabeth didn't remember… He could explain everything to her later, where he could tell her the full story and hope that she didn't hate him.

"So you know the location?"

"Yes. Here are the coordinates." Neal quickly scribbled down the location before flashing a smile at Shannon and shaking her hand. "I really should get going, I don't trust my cousins in my apartment alone."

"You're not going to do anything stupid, are you?" Peter asked, narrowing his eyes at him.

"Of course he isn't, Agent Burke, not with me around." Rachel smiled.

"Send me video evidence showing that Nico isn't either, and I'll believe you." Peter spoke.

"Done and done." Neal promised before smiling once more down at Shannon. "It was really nice meeting you, Miss Thina, I hope you find out the answers you're looking for."

"You too, Mr. Caffrey, and I hope I do as well."

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><p>"You dealt with that better than I thought you would." Rachel confided to Percy as they started walking back to his apartment.<p>

"I think I'm going to throw up."

"Spoke too soon… But she thinks we sound and look familiar! That's a good thing!"

"I also promised her my mother would tell her of the connection they have. Is that a good thing as well?"

Rachel winced. "You could always ask your mother to let you tell her?"

"Nothing about this endeavor could possibly go well, regardless of who tells her." Percy spoke pessimistically.

"Yes, yes, yes, did you get the plans?"

He took out a sheet of paper from her purse. "Here. I took the extra copy from the file."

"How'd you get it into my purse?"

"Not _every_ thief is a son of Hermes…"

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><p>"Did you get the plans, Lover Boy?" Nico asked Percy, snapping him out of his mindless staring into space.<p>

"Lover Boy?"

"You're thinking about Annabeth, aren't you?"

"No."

"Yes, he is." Rachel spoke, grabbing a tub of ice cream from the fridge. Thalia looked up as soon as she did so, as though she could sense the sugary goodness.

"Is that chocolate swirl?"

Rachel nodded, grabbing a very large spoon from a drawer. "Yep."

"Grab me a spoon."

Rachel did so, grabbing an equally large spoon from the same drawer. "Here."

They then proceeded to attack the large carton of ice cream with their equally large spoons.

"Why are they attacking that ice cream?" Nico spoke with an almost disgusted fascination.

"Their friend turned out to be alive, well, and completely ignorant as to their existence. Plus they're running the risk of never having blue chocolate chip cookies again." Percy explained, smiling bitterly. "Here are the plans." He handed them to Nico who smirked at the sight of them.

"I'll leave the girls to their ice cream and go get your mother."

Percy stood up so fast that his chair toppled over. "What? I thought I was going with you!"

Nico shrugged, his face showing some guilt. "I lied. You'd just hold me back. It's for your mother, Percy."

"I'm going with you Nico." Percy insisted, stepping forward intimidatingly while his hand strayed to the pen in his pocket.

"No. You're not. Thalia, it's time."

"Thalia?" Percy whirled around to face his other cousin.

"Sorry, Percy… It's for Sally." Then his hand was suddenly handcuffed to the chair, and though he strained at them, the handcuffs did not budge. Thalia knelt beside him and smiled at him sadly. "Celestial bronze, Seaweed Brain… It's not going to budge."

Percy continued struggling, though after a moment or two, he stopped, due to a voice in his head that sounded like Annabeth. "Nico, if something happens to her, I swear on the River Styx, I will hurt you."

"I get it. Nothing will happen, I promise."

Percy's eyes widened as Nico took out the Yankee hat and stuck it on his head determinedly, the bright white of it contrasting strongly with his dark clothes. "You didn't swear."

Nico's voice floated out to him though the boy's body wasn't visible. "No. I didn't."

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><p>"Is Mr. Caffrey's family, by chance, involved with the mob or some other organized crime group?" Shannon asked Agent Burke bemusedly as Neal left the building.<p>

"I'm actually not quite sure." He answered.

"Don't they usually have some type of gang wear? Or symbol or something?" Miss Thina asked, quite amused now.

The agent burst out laughing. "Usually, yes, but not Neal's family as far as I…" He trailed off, staring far off into space.

"As far as you know?"

"It might just be a theory, but I think… He, and the two cousins I've met all have the same necklace. It's just like a string, but with beads on it… It might just be a coincidence. Pretend I never said anything. I'm always far too talkative, ask my wife."

Shannon had been staring at him open-mouthedly since the middle of his rant. She put up a hand and touched the owl charm of her necklace… It had quiite a few beads, with the first being a pine tree, and the last a small image of the empire state building with tiny lettering around the edges. In the middle of the beads was a small owl charm. It was both her most prized possession, and the only thing she retained from her past. She had thought that under Mr. Caffrey's suit, she had glimpsed something like it, but dismissed it as her eyes playing tricks on her… But now…

"Oh, sorry, Agent Burke, I have to go. I have a very important meeting with a client in half an hour and I still have to get all of the materials prepared!" She lied deftly before quickly saying her goodbyes to the friendly middle-aged agent and leaving.

Neal Caffrey knew something about her past…. And she would be damned if she didn't find out what.

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><p><strong>Don't kill me for spending far too long writing this chapter... It just wouldn't come, and I had to force it out. I'm sorry, but at least it's all finally here! <strong>

**Seriously, though. I'm sorry, and don't kill me.**

**-Marie**

**PS: I'd love to hear what you guys think of this chapter!**


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